


The T Subjects

by buttsbeyondbutts



Category: Rise of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Cartoon 2018), Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Brother Feels, Child Abuse, Flashbacks, Gen, Guilt, Horror, Hurt/Comfort, Medical Torture, Muteness, Non-Consensual Drug Use, Original Character Death(s), Platonic Relationships, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protectiveness, Unethical Experimentation, Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-03
Updated: 2018-08-11
Packaged: 2019-06-21 11:04:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,306
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15556317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/buttsbeyondbutts/pseuds/buttsbeyondbutts
Summary: Mikey and Don face their worst fears when they're separated from their brothers by ruthless scientists.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Exists primarily in the 2018 verse but could easily happen in the other series.

Mikey’s bones ached. He felt like he’d crashed through a twenty-story building that also fell on top of him. Somebody was talking, but their voice was muffled. He opened his eyes to darkness, blinking through the pain.

“Oh, thank god,” Donnie said vehemently. “Mikey, say something, okay? I’m kinda freaking out here.”

Mikey’s tongue felt heavy. “What happened?”

Donnie stared at him, obviously paling even in the darkness. “Some guys with tranq darts got the drop on us. They clubbed ya pretty bad.”

Pretty bad might be an understatement. Mikey blinked some more. “Where’re the guys?”

“Dunno,” Donnie sounded like he was gonna be sick. “Home, I hope. I haven’t seen anyone since they grabbed us.”

Mikey swallowed. He looked around again. They were in an empty room, with cold tile floor. He couldn’t see any doors or windows, any furniture of any kind. He rose to his elbows, but Donnie held him back.

"Don't sit up yet, okay?" Donnie said. "I think you might have a concussion or something. You were... you were out for a long time."

Mikey sighed and settled back on his shell. "Where are we?"

"I don't know." His brother looked uncertainly around the darkness. Donatello was always certain. "They took my tech, our weapons-"

 _Oh god._ "They took your battle shell."

"I'm fine."

"Donnie!"

"I'm fine, Mikey!" Donatello gripped him tightly on the shoulders. "Listen to me. I am fine. We are gonna be fine. We need to stay calm though. Can you stay calm?"

 _No. Nononono._ Mikey took a deep breath. "Okay, Donnie."

"Good." Donnie squeezed his shoulder once more before letting go. “Hard as nails, right?”

Mikey nodded, not really trusting himself to talk. Donnie sat back on his haunches and looked around again. Mikey’s eyes continued adjusting to the light. His brother looked naked without his battle shell, his pads and his tech. Mikey reached up to pat his own bare head. Jeez, he hadn’t been without his mask since-

He couldn’t remember the last time he took his mask off, unless you count taking it off to wash his face, which he didn’t do nearly as often as Pops told him to.

“How ya feelin’?” Donnie asked, making him wonder how long he’d been quiet.

“Achey,” Mikey said. “Kinda cold.”

“Yeah.”

Mikey sat up slowly. The expected dizziness didn’t come, and he leaned back on the wall next to his brother. Donnie draped his arm over his shell. “You remember anything, Mikey?”

Mikey thought. “We were out on Front Street, going to April’s new job.”

“That’s right.”

“Raph and Leo were arguing about- I dunno.”

Donnie shrugged. “Something stupid. What else?”

“Nothing,” Mikey searched his memories. “We were up on the roof. Somebody screamed and-”

“You went to help,” Donnie said.

Mikey let out a slow ragged breath. He wasn’t going to freak out again. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Donnie said, rubbing his head in gentle circles, like Mikey was a little kid again. “It was a trap. They bashed your head. Got me in the neck.”

“What about Raph and Leo?”

“Last I saw they were fighting with us,” Donnie said. He swallowed. “It was… planned. They were waiting for us. There were a lot of them.”

“Yeah.” The memories were returning now. Humans in black jumpsuits, masks over their faces, surrounded them. They had tasers and darts, and heavy clubs. Somebody hit him with something. The last thing he remembered was Donnie and Raph shouting his name.

Mikey stood up quickly. “Whoa, hey!” Donnie jumped up to steady him. “Take it easy.”

“We gotta get out of here,” Mikey said. He wasn’t panicking. He was fine. “We gotta find Raph and Leo.”

“Look, I agree but- what are you doing?”

Mikey kept moving along the wall, his hands stretched out for any change in the flat walls. “Figuring out what we’re working with. Unless you already did this?”

“No, I- uh-”

“You were worried about me,” Mikey couldn’t help but grin. “Thanks, D, but I’m fine now. Not even dizzy.”

“Okay, fine,” Donnie said, clearly relieved to have something to do. He started inching along the wall, in the opposite direction. “Feels like… steel? Some kinda metal.”

“Rules out punching through the wall,” Mikey chuckled. “Find any doors?”

“Nothing.” Donnie knocked against the wall. “Feels pretty solid. Who the shell are these guys?”

Mikey didn’t know. He just kept walking along the wall, turning the corner to walk forward. They needed to get out, find their weapons, and their brothers. Just three things. Easy peasy.

“Hey, Donnie?” He called as the wall changed under his fingers.

“What? What’d you find?”

“It’s glass,” Mikey knocked against the wall. “All of it.”

“Whaaaaattt?” Donnie hurried over. “You’re right.”

“You think I don’t know glass?” Mikey grinned. “Alright, soft shell stand back. We are busting out!”

Donatello grumbled but moved back a few paces. Mikey nodded and pulled his fist back. “Cowabunga!”

The wall reverbed but didn’t budge. Mikey winced, shaking the pain out of his hand. “Cowabunga!” He punched again. And again. And again, and again and again.

“More like Owabunga,” Donnie chuckled. “Let me take over.”

“What about your-”

“I’ll be fine,” Donnie said, irritably stepping in front of him. “It may shock you to learn, Michelangelo, but I’ve managed without my battle shell before.”

“When?”

“Before,” Donnie stretched out his muscles and gauged the wall. “Fibonacci!”

Just as before, the wall shook a little but refused to break. Don hit it again and again, testing it in different places, trying to find a weak point. Mikey walked to the back of the room and took a running start, bashing into the wall with his shoulder.

“Don’t hurt yourself,” Donnie said as his brother fell to the floor.

“Ugh. I hate this thing!” Mikey stood up and hit the wall. Nothing. Donnie hit it again. Nothing. They hit it together. Nothing. There was nothing else to do but keep hitting it, as hard as they could. The room didn’t change. The wall showed no signs of breaking, but they kept trying, until they couldn’t try any more.

“We should,” Donnie wheezed, “We should take a break. Get our strength back.”

“Good idea,” Mikey groaned and collapsed on his shell.

Donnie chuckled. “C’mon, little brother. Let’s get to a corner.”

“Why?”

“I don’t feel like another sneak attack, do you?”

Mikey got up and wearily followed Don back to the far corner. They settled down. Donnie put his arm over Mikey’s shoulder. Grateful, Mikey settled on to his chest. “We’re gonna be okay, bud.” He whispered, just before Mikey fell asleep. 

 

* * *

 

Donatello heard the buzzing before he saw the lights. He nudged his brother hard in the side. "Mikey, wake up!"

"What? What's- oh." Michelangelo followed his eyes to the glass wall. They could see it now, a shiny black wall reflecting themselves back. Well, at least we're not too banged up. Donnie thought. "I think it's one-way glass. Like in cop movies."

Mikey shivered. "You think they're watching us?"

"Seems reasonable to assume," Donatello said.

"Hey!" Mikey stood and shouted at the black mirror. "Let us out, jerks!"

"Mikey!"

"What?"

"Maybe don't antagonize the psychos who stole our weapons?"

"Or what, they're gonna lock us in a bare cell and stare at us?"

"Good point." He stood up and cupped his hands around his mouth. "This is a federal crime, guys! We want our phone call!"

"That's good!" Mikey raised his voice again. "You do not want to meet our lawyers!"

"They are very well educated! You give us back our stuff, we can let this go!"

"Except we're not gonna let it go." Mikey whispered.

"No, dude, we're gonna kick butt."

"Yeah!"

"So, you better just let us go now! Before we get mad!"

The mirror glass gave no answer. Mikey looked at Don. Don looked up, at the soft, almost imperceptible turn of gears. A stream of hard brown pellets cascaded down to the floor. Mikey picked one up and turned it over in his hand.

"Ugh, I think it's supposed to be food." He stuck his tongue out. "Haven't you guys ever heard of Pizza?!"

"Mikey, I don't think you're seeing what this is." Donatello said, staring at the little ceiling spot where the food came from.

"It looks like these weirdos watching us don't know how food works." Mikey said. He looked up at the ceiling with Don. "Oooooh."

"Stay calm." He whispered, trying not to move his mouth. "We wait till those lights go off, then we get that door open."

"Ok... how?"

"Got all day to figure that out. Where there are wires, there are ways, lil' bro."

Mikey nodded. "What do we do 'till then?"

"Act normal, I guess. Don't eat the food. It could be drugged."

"Wasn't gonna." Mikey made another face. He tossed the pellet at the glass wall. Donatello walked to the wall, trying to make out some kind of shape behind it.

“Hey, whoever’s back there, I’m Donatello, and that’s my brother, Mikey. We’re not monsters or aliens or whatever you think this is. We’re just a couple of norm-” he glanced back at Mikey, still throwing food pellets at the wall. “We’re just a couple of kids, okay? Let us out.”

The wall didn’t answer. Donnie didn’t really expect it to.

They spent what felt like hours yelling at the wall, hitting the wall, or just resting. Donatello missed his tech so much. They had no way of tracking time or anything to do but try fruitlessly to escape. Their best bet, the ceiling, couldn’t yet be risked. He could feel eyes on him, from who or whatever was on the other side of the wall. Not to say that they wouldn’t watch when the lights went off. Still, it remained their best shot, not one to waste.

Finally, the lights flickered out. Donatello stood and stretched. “You ready to get out of here, Mikey?”

His brother nodded. Donnie stepped back, calculating the necessary angles one last time before bounding off the walls toward the ceiling. _Almost there!_

He crashed down on his shell.

“Donnie!”

“I’m okay!” _Owowowowowowowowoww._ Mikey rushed over to help him up. “I’m fine.”

Mikey obviously didn’t believe him. “Let me try.”

“You don’t even know what you’re looking for.”

“It’s in the middle there,” Mikey pointed to the closed food drop. “I’ll get it open and you can do the rest.”

Donatello wanted to argue but Mikey was already half way up the wall. He fell twice, tried a different approach and fell again. “Okay, this isn’t working.” Donatello said as he watched his brother jump straight up from the floor, waving his arms frantically. “Lift me up.”

Stacked on top of his brother, the ceiling was still two feet out of reach. “Little further, Mikey.”

“How much arm do you think I have?!” Mickey whined. “Get caught with Raph next time!”

“I’ll put it in my protocol,” Donnie muttered. _Raph would probably complain less. Not much less but less. And he’s about a foot taller._ “Steady!”

“I’m trying!”

But Donnie was already falling again. At least he landed on top of Mikey this time, so his shell remained undamaged. “Ugh.” He covered his face with his hands. “Let’s try again.”

They tried again for the rest of the night. They stacked the food up and stood on the little mound to get extra height. The opening was almost imperceptible, not much bigger than Donatello’s head. No matter how he tried, he couldn’t get the thing to budge, not before Mikey lost his balance and they came crashing down again.

The lights flickered back on. “This might be harder than I thought.” Donnie said.

* * *

The next day seemed even longer than the first. Donnie kept staring at the food spot in the ceiling, waiting for it to open. Mikey kept shouting at the glass, though his voice was starting to ache. There was no sign of Leo or Raph, or any of the creeps watching them.

More food tumbled down from the hole in the ceiling. Donnie even tried jumping for it them, but it closed too quickly. Mikey’s stomach growled.

“Is it me or are those starting to look appetizing?”

“It’s you.” Donnie said, glaring at the ceiling.

Mikey sat down in front of the pile of brown and green pellets. Donnie was probably right about them being drugged. Donnie was usually right about most things.

Still, no reason to be bored and hungry. Mikey started separating the browns and the greens. There were more browns, but he could work with it. He arranged them in a simple mosaic smiley face and grinned down at it. What else could he do? Mikey picked up some more pellets, wondering if he could make a paint with some spit.

God, his throat was dry.

“Mikey!” Don snapped at him.

Mikey jumped up to see the black mirror wall gliding up into the ceiling. Another thick glass wall, this time transparent, stood in it’s place. They could see humans on the other side. Two wore suits and sunglasses, while the other three wore lab coats. They were surrounded by dozens of armed guards, dressed in black combat gear.

Mikey backed up to stand next to Donnie, ready for another fight. “Those are the guys that grabbed us.”

“Yeah, Mikey.”

“Think they’re here to talk?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Good,” He balled his fists.

“Mikey, they have guns.”

“We have skills!”

Donnie sighed. “Look, there’s a door on the far end. When they open it, we run, okay?”

“Got it.”

The door didn’t open. They stood, ready and waiting to attack, while the humans on the other side just stared at them. One of the lab coats wrote furiously on a clipboard but the rest kept their eyes on the turtles.

Donnie lost control first. “What?! What do you want from us?!”

The woman in the business suit said something.

“Did you catch that?” Mikey asked.

“I’m guessing it wasn’t good.” Donnie tensed as the soldiers began to move. “Remember, get to the door and don’t look back.”

“What? Donnie-”

“Go!”

Because the door was opening, and soldiers were running through. Mikey raced toward the door, running easily along the wall. Donnie stayed beside him, a few paces behind, kicking mook butt. Mikey could see the door, the promise of escape. He leapt for it.

Then he heard Donnie scream.

“Don-” Something sharp pierced his neck. Suddenly his limbs were too heavy. The room went fuzzy and then snapped into darkness.

* * *

Donatello blinked warily under the fluorescents. He recognized this feeling. _Tranq_. He thought. _Where’s Mikey?_

At least he was out of that featureless cell. He could hear the whirr and beep of machines, the most beautiful sound in the world next to any sentence involving Pizza.

_Where’s Mikey?_

He was laying at a 45-degree slant on something cold and metallic. The lights were too bright. He tried to shield his eyes but found his arms immobile. They had strapped him down.

“Mikey?! Where’s my brother, you sick-”

The beeping grew more frantic. _Heart monitor_ , Donnie’s brain filled in. _Where’s the other?_

He strained to hear another machine, slightly softer, beeping at a more relaxed pace.

“Subject T1 has woken,” A human voice spoke in monotone. “Heart rate increased to 120 per minute, lowering steadily to 100. Effects of tranquilizers seem to be minimal.”

“Where’s my brother?” He repeated, blinking hard. Since he recognized the machine, Donatello was too aware of his heart beating out of his chest. “Where’s Mikey?”

“Subject T2 remains sedated. Heart rate 60 beats per minute. Tranquilizer will likely last longer due to smaller size.”

T2 had to be Mikey. “He’s thirteen!” Donnie shouted. “Let him go!”

Someone moved the light out of his eyes and he recognized one of the men in the lab coats. He spoke into a small recorder. “T1 and T2 both show signs of dehydration.”

“You locked us in a room without water!” Donatello glanced around the room. He could see machines, another scientist, four armed guards and- “Mikey!”

He could breath again. His little brother lay on a metal slab, far too big for him. He looked incredibly small, and way too vulnerable, strapped down with wires coming out of his arms. His head lolled off to the side, unconscious, but he was breathing.

“What are you giving him?” The IV bag attached to Mikey’s arm held a clear, unrecognizable liquid.

“It’s a saline drip, used to treat dehydration.” Clipboard said. He was younger than Monotone, with sandy blond hair.

“Johnson, don’t interact.” Monotone said, from behind Donnie.

“Sorry, sir.”

“T1 displays advanced mimicry, possibly problem-solving intelligence.”

 _Yeah, better get that intelligence out to play ‘cause there’s a problem needs solving, Donnie Boy._ He focused on Johnson. “Hey, it’s not mimicry. My name is Donatello. That’s my little brother, Michelangelo. We live with-” he hesitated. _They already know about the others._ “Our dad and our older brothers: Leonardo and Raphael. Pops likes Renaissance. They’re looking for us. They’re worried. Let us go home. Please.”

Johnson looked like he was going to say something but bit his time and scribbled on his clip board. “Let us go.” Donatello repeated, trying to keep his panic under wraps.  Johnson walked over to Mikey, looking away from him.

“Sterilizing T2,” He said and wiped a small cloth on Mikey’s arm.

“Leave him alone!” Donatello strained against his bonds, but he was still weak from the tranq. “Mikey!”

“Beginning blood withdrawal.”

Another bag began to fill with dark red liquid. Donnie felt sick. “Stop it!” His voice cracked in panic. “You can’t just take his blood while he’s unconscious!”

But Johnson had already turned away from Mikey. He wouldn’t meet Donnie’s eyes as he sterilized T1. He stuck a long needle into his arm, the one without the saline solution, and blood began pouring free. Any calm Donnie had maintained flew out the window. “Get this thing out of my arm! You can’t do this!”

Across the lab, Mikey groaned softly. _Calm down._ Donatello told himself. _Just calm down. If Mikey sees you panicking, he’s gonna get scared._

_Now is the time to get scared! Whack jobs are stealing our blood!_

_It doesn’t do us any good to freak out. Look around, what can you use?_

But he couldn’t look anywhere but at Mikey. The youngest turtle stirred again, slowly lifting his head. It could not be good for them to pass out this much. His eyelids fluttered open and he stared vaguely at his brother. _Oh god._ His eyes were bloodshot. The hell was in those darts?

"Don?"

Don't freak out. "It's okay, Mikey."

He tried to sit up, only to discover the straps and IVs. "Donnie?!"

"Mikey, look at me!" He looked and went somehow paler. "You're okay."

"I don't feel okay!'

"I know," actually there weren't a lot of ways the situation could get less okay. "But you're gonna be okay. We're gonna get out of here, I promise."

Mikey nodded.

"We're tough, right? Hard as nails."

Mikey managed a weak smile. "Hard as nails."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No angst like turtle angst. I've loved these guys since I was five but for some reason I just want to see them in pain forever


	2. Chapter 2

_"I'm booorrrreeeeddd!" Mikey flopped back on his shell, rocking back and forth._

_Donnie didn't answer. He just flipped another page in his book and made a note in the margins._

_"Whacha doin'?"_

_"Working."_

_"Whacha workin' on?"_

_"Stuff." Donnie flipped another page._

_"What kinda stuff?"_

_"Math stuff, Mikey."_

_"Borring!"_

_Donatello glared at him. "So go bug somebody else then."_

_"I can't," Mikey whined. "Leo and Raph are out and Pops is meditating."_

_"Well, I'm busy so-" Donnie paused. "Wait Leo and Raph went out?! It's not even night!"_

_"Dude, it's like nine o'clock. It's been night for a long time."_

_Donnie reached for his tablet and checked the time. "Oh. Man, I've been at this since noon. No wonder I'm starving."_

_Mikey followed him over to the kitchen. "You did math for nine hours?! I don't even wanna do something fun for nine hours."_

_"Math is-" Donnie shook his head. He crouched down in front of the fridge and pulled out a half-eaten sandwich. "I'm not debating this again. Why don't you watch TV or draw or something?"_

_"There's nothing on." Mikey said, sulkily. "And I'm outta paper. Raph said he'd get more but he keeps forgetting."_

_"Did you draw on the both sides?"_

_"If you draw on the back, it shows on the front! It ruins it, Donnie!"_

_"Well, I don't know what to tell ya, kid." Donnie sat back on his chair and opened his text book. "Sometimes you just gotta be bored."_

_"Ugh!" Mikey rolled back on his shell, folding his arms. "Wish I could go up to the surface."_

_Donnie put down the book and clicked sympathetically. "Next year, buddy."_

_Mikey scoffed. It was easy for Donnie. Donnie could go up to the surface whenever he liked, as long as he avoided humans. The above world had lost it's mystery. He wasn't stuck in the sewers all day._

_"It's a dumb rule!" Mikey said, glancing at the door to make sure Pops wasn't coming in. "It's not like the humans are gonna get less dangerous just because I'm thirteen."_

_"No, but you'll be stronger." Donnie  said. It wasn't the first time he had explained this. "Pops is teaching you how to use the chucks, right? Once you get that down, you'll be able to defend yourself. And he'll show you all about stealth and how to disappear."_

_"Yeah, but he could've taught me that stuff last year and then I could go up with you and Raph and Leo!"_

_"Mikey, if Pops let you have the chucks last year, you would've wrecked the living room."_

_Mikey stuck out his tongue. Donnie rolled his eyes._

_"Hey, you wanna practice for a bit?"_

_Mikey jumped up. "Really?!"_

_Donnie nodded. He set his book back on the desk. "Math'll keep. Got your chucks?"_

_Mikey was already spinning them. "Let's go! Let's go let's go!"_

* * *

"Just let us go," his voice was dry, but he couldn't stop. Not with that scalpel closing in on his shell. Another biopsy, no anesthetic. The exact scenario Pops always warned them about. Humans in white coats cutting off piece after piece until there was nothing left.

And when they finished with him, they'd start again on Mikey.

Science demanded experimentation. Over and over and over again.

Donatello kept his eyes trained on his little brother. Mikey didn't say anything. He couldn't say anything. They had injected something into his neck and now he couldn't do anything but wheeze in pain. Probably some kind of paralytic. Mikey sounded too young. It was probably a lot harder to torture somebody who talked like a kid.

Don never thought he'd miss Mikey's babble. He wished they’d knock him out again or toss them back in that featureless cell. Better than watching them cut up his brother.

Pops wouldn’t even let them watch R rated movies. Now they were in a goddamn snuff film.

The scalpel slid free, taking a piece of flesh with it. A scream escaped before he could stop it. _Be strong. Be strong. Mikey needs you._

Because Mikey had a hard shell. A simple knife wouldn’t get a sample. They’d need something stronger. Something with an engine.

“Don’t-” he croaked pathetically. “Please, he’s a kid! He’s just a kid!”

Johnson hesitated but picked up the circular saw anyway. Mikey gave a terrified squeak and struggled wildly against the restraints. The guards moved closer, raising their stun batons. The last sample they took, Mikey managed to pull into his shell. They’d electrocuted him to get him out.

 _If he struggles too much, they’ll kill him._ He felt colder than he ever had in waking life. _They’ll cut too deep and they’ll kill him._

“Wait-“ Johnson hesitated again. _Say something, smart guy! Fix it!_ “You need the skeleton intact! Take an x-ray, an MRI, something!”

Johnson looked down at the saw and up at Mikey. “Doctor-”

“Damn it, Johnson!” A woman’s voice spoke outside of Donatello’s vision. He’d never heard her speak before. “We don’t have time for simpering.”

“I know,” Johnson looked down at the saw again. “It’s just… he’s-”

Donatello never heard what he or Mikey were, as the woman’s voice cut through the cold. “It is no longer your concern.”

“Wait!” Johnson yelled, but the guards were already dragging him out of the lab. Mikey watched him go, looking half panicked and half relieved. Donatello took in a sharp breath.

_Ok, you bought him 30 seconds. Good job._

_Where the hell are Raph and Leo?_

It felt like weeks since they’d been captured but Donatello had no way of knowing how much time had passed. He knew the lab coats and sunglasses knew about his older brothers. If Raph and Leo were free, they wouldn’t rest until they found their brothers. If they’d been caught, why weren’t they there with him and Mikey?

There was a third possibility that he definitely couldn’t think about, because it would paralyze him with grief and rage and Mikey would suffer for it.

Suffer worse for it.

 _Focus._ The other two were talking. He couldn’t understand monotone, but the woman didn’t even try to lower her voice. “We’ll get another one. They’re the most significant biological specimens in the last century. Forget winning the Nobel, they’ll rename the committee after us.”

Her heels clicked on the tile as she approached them. She’d have been pretty in any other scenario, with sleek black hair and sharp blue eyes. He felt sick looking at her.

“What a beautiful beast you are,” She stroked his cheek with a long red nail. "My former colleague was very interested in that brain of yours. Whether you're a human turned turtle or turtle turned human-"

"We-"

"I don't care." She smiled. "Whatever you were before, you're my paycheck now. We're going to reverse engineer you, Donatello, and sell you to the highest bidders." She glanced back at Mikey. "No amount of begging is going to change that. If you're co-operative, maybe one of you will survive the end game."

 _What's the end game?_ "Fuck you, you sadistic psycho!"

She chuckled softly. "Amazing how many try to insult me with the truth. Better than that incessant whining at least.”

She turned away from Donatello. “I think we’re done for the moment, Dr. Edas. It’ll take a moment to replace Johnson. If you don’t mind finishing up?”

Monotone- Dr. Edas apparently- appeared in the blackness behind Mikey. “Very well. Return T1 to the enclosure.”

“What?” Donatello saw Mikey’s eyes go wide. “No, please, don’t-” _You’re wasting time!_

“Mikey! You’re strong! You’re gonna be okay!”

But Mikey was crying now. He hadn’t even cried when they muted him or took their first biopsy. Now he sobbed, mouthing his brother’s name in a silent plea for help.

And Donnie couldn’t help. He could only shout hoarse reassurances as the guards wheeled him away from his brother.

* * *

_Nodonnienodon’tleavemedonniedon’ttakedonniedon’ttakedonnie._

Mikey squirmed with new ferocity, trying to break through the bonds.

_Don’ttakedonniedon’ttakedonniedon’ttakedonnie!_

“Dramatics,” the cue ball Dr. Edas muttered. He knelt and picked up the small saw from where Johnson dropped it. “Instruments must be sterilized again.”

 _Calm down._ Mikey forced himself to breathe. Splinter had taught them meditation techniques, ways to keep their heads in stressful situations. He could-

_Splinter’s not here._

_No father. No brothers. No weapons. No voice._

Mikey was alone with a man who wanted to cut off his shell. Like they’d taken his blood and snipped off pieces of his skin. The way they’d collected his urine and stool, even as he squeezed his eyes shut in humiliation.

 _Breathe. Just breathe._ He closed his eyes and tried to picture the sewers again, training with his father and brothers. _You’re a ninja. You fight monsters… now you’re just doing it alone._

“Now,” Edas returned. “With the instrument sterilized. We will begin with the shell biopsy.”

Mikey squirmed in his restraints. It wouldn’t do anything, but he couldn’t help it.

“Subject may need to be anesthetized, to avoid skeletal damage.” The doctor said irritably. “The vocal paralysis makes assessing pain tolerance difficult. Eliminating movement would further muddy the waters.”

Mikey weighed his option. Which was worse? Wake up missing a part of himself or f/eel it being removed.

_A ninja waits for the prime opportunity._

If Edas made a mistake, they were alone. The guards had left with Donnie and the scary lady. If he messed up, maybe Mikey could get away.

He forced himself to still. Edas looked down at him for the first time. His thin lips twitched, in a split-second smile. “Beginning the biopsy.”

The blade whirred. Mikey wished he could scream.

* * *

It hurt to talk, but Donatello couldn’t stop. Not with his brother’s look of terror burned into his brain. “He’s thirteen!” He rasped on the gurney. “He still finger paints, for god’s sake! You’re torturing a kid, you sick assholes!”

Mikey had pouted for nearly twenty minutes the last time someone (Raphael) called him a kid. Then he noticed some new graffiti and scrambled on top of Raph’s head to get a better look.

The woman snorted. “That thing took out three soldiers. It’s hardly defenseless.”

“His name is Mikey! He’s not a thing!”

She shrugged. Donnie saw red.

“I’m going to kill you,” he snarled. “Let my brother go and maybe I’ll make it quick.”

The woman chuckled. “If begging doesn’t work, do you really think threats will?”

“It’s a promise.”

She rolled her eyes. The gurney came to a halt and one of the guards left to open the enclosure. They rolled him behind the glass. The woman leaned in the door way.

“Well, considering how well you keep your promises to Mikey, I don’t have much to worry about, do I?” She stepped back and closed the door. “We’ll see you tomorrow, Subject T1.”

The guard, still decked in the same black combat gear they’d worn when they first appeared, began to undo the straps around his wrists and ankles. They probably thought he was still weak from the IV and the electrocution.

They didn’t know a goddamn thing.

In one second, the last lock on his body sprung open. The next second had his fingers closing around the guard’s trachea. He gurgled, the first sound he’d made all night, reaching for his baton. Donnie pulled it out of his hand and jammed it to his chest. The armor kept out any real effect, but it startled him long enough for Donnie to put him in a headlock.

“Let us go or I break his fucking neck!”

The other guard, next to the woman, had his own cattle prod out and raised. She put a hand on his chest.

“Go ahead.” She nodded at Donatello.

 _Unexpected_. He gripped the weapon tighter. “What?”

“Kill him.” She gestured at the guard. “Our clients will be very interested to see how lethal you can be, and it may shut up the hippies when all this comes to light to see you murder a man on camera.”

“You think I won’t?!”

“I’m actively encouraging you to do so. Snap his neck. Rip off a limb or two. Show me what kind of weapon you could be.” Her smile grew. She looked hungry.

 _“My son,”_ Master Splinter had said when he first handed Raph his sais. _“The world is often unkind to those like us. I will teach you the ways of ninjitsu so you may defend yourself and your brothers from those who would harm you. You will feel anger. You will wish to use these skills to rid the world of evil. You must fight that urge, for once you purposefully take a life, any life, you will lose yourself.”_

 _Damn it._ Donnie jabbed the cattle prod into the guard’s chest, holding it there until he went limp, and dropped him on the floor.

The woman frowned. “Another broken promise.”

Donatello said nothing. He had a weapon now. That was a definite step in the right direction. They’d have to open the door to get their fallen comrade. He could incapacitate them, grab Mikey and go home.

The woman seemed to follow his logic. “Tranq it, recover the weapon and tell your colleague he’s fired.”

_Fuck._

The other guard nodded. He lifted his wrist to his mouth and spoke into it. “Send two back up to containment unit A.”

The woman turned without another word and clacked down the hallway. Donatello slammed the stick into the glass with a frustrated scream. The window shook but didn’t break. The woman didn’t even turn around.

 _Useless._ Even as he pounded the glass, he knew it was true. He couldn’t save Mikey. He couldn’t even help himself. He thought about withdrawing into the relative safety of his shell, but that felt like giving up. Besides, they’d just force him out again. He jabbed the baton into the window, over and over. _Useless. Useless. Useless._

* * *

Mikey was alive. Somehow, the pain had gotten bad enough that it circled back around to numbness. There was a word for this. Donnie would know what it was.

“Doctor?” The woman was back, without Donnie. Was that bad or good? It felt bad. “Are you finished?”

“Nearly,” Edas said. Mikey couldn’t see him. In fact, he couldn’t get a good look at much of anything with the room twisting back and forth, fading in and out of focus. “T2 will need regular saline treatments for the next twenty-four hours, due to slight hypovolemic shock.”

Shock. That was the word.

The woman sniffed. “Do we really need twenty-four hours? It’s not as if it’ll last much longer. It’s much weaker than the other.

Mikey summoned his last inch of strength to glare in her general direction. He wasn’t weak. Donnie said he was strong, and Donnie was smarter than anybody.

“Two subjects are better than one,” Edas said. “Especially with T3 and T4 still at large.”

 _Leo and Raph_. Mikey tried to focus. _At large means free. Leo and Raph are free._

He closed his eyes in gratitude. His brothers could still come for him.

“Three and four will present themselves shortly, if their pack loyalty remains consistent.”

“Bale.”

“What?”

“A group of turtles is called a Bale,” Edas said with a new sharpness to his monotone. “I will not sacrifice my subject based upon your hunches.”

“Now who’s dramatic?” The woman said. “I never told you to vivisect the thing. Just don’t worry your beautiful bald head about keeping it alive. The others will do nicely for a demonstration and you’ve collected enough samples of T2 for a dozen papers.”

Edas sniffed. “Your advice is noted, madam.”

“Our employers want results, Edas,” her voice went cold again. “We have a very limited window to collect our data. Don’t waste time.”

“You have my word,” Edas said. He stepped again into Mikey’s vision and adjusted his I.V drip. Mikey thought he should say something cool, like “you won’t get away with this” or something from a Jupiter Jim flick, but talking wasn’t an option. All that came out was a low rasp. Neither of the humans took any notice.

* * *

He couldn't tell how long he'd been there. The lights didn't go off. Food didn't come. They knocked him out and he woke up in his cell with new cuts and bruises.

Mikey didn't come back.

When sleep took him- real sleep without chemical aid- he saw his brothers. Leo strapped to an operating table. The spikes of Raph's shell falling under whirring blades. Mikey's eyes filled with fear.

And worse, Pops looking down at him with kind eyes, reminding them to look after each other.

_I can't… I can't,_

_Another broken promise._

She came sometimes. He caught glimpses of her before the drugs set it but sometimes she just stood on the other side of the glass, watching him. Donnie shouted at her. He didn't have the energy to do anything else. He barely had the energy for that.

She didn't say anything. She barely acknowledged his sentience, just tapped on her tablet. Occasionally, she'd order her goons to grab or deliver something, in a voice too low for him to understand. No one ever talked about T2. No one mentioned Mikey.

He knew he was losing his mind. Between the drugs, the cuts and the featureless cell, Donatello was amazed he still remembered his name.

He lay with his stomach on the cold tile, limbs splayed out so he didn’t have put his weight on it. He didn’t care if he like an animal. If they didn’t want to act human, why should he? Maybe he could get some actual rest before they put him under again.

He didn’t look up at the sound of footsteps. The woman wore heels, and these were flat sounds. That meant guards and tranq darks in his neck. Donnie didn’t need to see that coming.

The gasp was new. Guards didn’t gasp. Donnie forced himself to look up. She wasn’t a guard. She wore a short lab coat, but she wasn’t the woman in the lab coat. She was too young. Too familiar.

 _April._  

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mikey is legally unable to swear but Donnie makes up for it. 
> 
> Thank you for all your comments and kudos, they really mean a lot!
> 
> Please review!


	3. Chapter 3

_“A ninja waits for the prime opportunity,” Pops whispered. Mikey bit his lip, trying to contain his excitement. “We exist in the shadows, my son, striking like lightening in a storm. By the time they feel our strike, we have returned to the clouds.”_

_“Pops, we live underground.”_

_“Yes,” Pops sighed. “and we will review metaphor in your next lesson. Now, you know your mission?”_

_“Hai!”_

_“Good. Now go!”_

_Mikey slipped deftly into the living room. Donnie had fallen asleep under another text book._

“T1 has been exhausted.”

_Mikey took cover behind the couch. Raph and Leo were getting sloppy-_

“Precisely why I advocated caution, but you wanted your payday.”

_-he could just hear them in between Donnie’s snores._

_“-never gonna know. He’s too busy with Mikey.”_

_He climbed silently from pipe to pipe, reaching the ideal position over his brothers._

_“What do we say when he notices it’s gone?”_

_Leo put on his most honest stage whisperer. “Pops, you ate that cake last night? You don’t remember? Must be gettin’ older…”_

“Listen, you smug bastard, stabilize the subject and prep for transport.”

_“He is super old…” Raph thought a moment. “Okay. Let’s do this!”_

_“Pops says “Don’t touch my cake!” Mikey shouted, swinging down in front of them. Raph shrieked, tossing the forbidden baked goods into the air. Mikey caught it and flashed back to Splinter’s room._

_“He’s a witch!” Leo shouted as the door slammed behind him. Pops cackled, catching Mikey and the cake._

_“Excellent work, my son!”_

Another needle in his arm, drawing more blood.

_Pops tore the cake apart, handing Mikey his piece. “Excellent work!”_

* * *

April’s eyes went wide as they met Donnie’s. She looked like she might pass out, pale and shaking.

“What are you doing down here!?” A guard shouted from the end of the hall.

April jumped and turned away from Donnie. “I got lost lookin’ for the bathroom.” She snapped. “What the heck kinda monsters are you makin’ down here!?”

“That’s above your pay grade.” The guard said. “What are you, an intern?”

“I’m a post-doc,” April said haughtily. “You wanna see my ID?”

“Whatever, kid.” The guard growled but at least he put his baton back in its holster. “This ain’t a zoo. If I catch you down here again, I’m telling your boss.”

“Don’t worry,” she crossed her fingers behind her back. “I’m never comin’ back here again!”

“Can’t blame you,” He took her shoulder, guiding her away from the enclosure. “Damn thing grosses me out.”

Donnie watched her grow smaller and smaller as they left the long hallway. He’d never really paid attention to wear the humans went after they finished gawking at him. They turned left, and April disappeared from view.

 _Did that actually happen?_ Donatello forced his arms to move, to push him off the floor. It looked like April and sounded like her, but he couldn’t rule out hallucinations. He’d been dreaming about his brothers and father, why not his friend? When his reality became a nightmare, why shouldn’t the dreams seem real?

But, on the off chance that was April, he needed to be ready. Because April would come back for him.

And Mikey.

* * *

_“Okay, Mikey, righty tighty, left loosey.”_

_“I’m trying! It’s stuck!”_

_“The first one’s the hardest,” Raph chuckled. “Just take your time. You got this.”_

_“I’m not even allowed up there yet.” He let go of the wrench and rubbed his hands together. Why was he so cold?_

“We will complete the MRI now.” Edas said. They wheeled him away from the beeping.

_“One more month, buddy.” Raph said. “I thought you miiight like a sneak preview, but you gotta get that first manhole opened on your own. Rite of passage.”_

_Mikey nodded, summoning all his strength._

“Should we sedate him again?”

“A waste of resources. With the vocal cords paralyzed we need facial expression to determine its status.”

_“It’s moving!”_

_“Yeah! Keep going!”_

“The subject won’t… resist?”

“It’s incapable. The trauma rendered it catatonic.”

_Metal scraped against metal. The man hole cover popped free. Mikey grinned back at his brother before pushing it carefully overhead._

Metal clicked at his wrist. The leather loosened and fell away.

_“You smell that?” Raph put his arm around his shoulder. “That’s what freedom smells like.”_

_“It kinda smells like garbage.” Mikey said, but the lights were so beautiful._

* * *

Blue and white lights crackled through the air, cut through with a sword. Leo came through first. He had a few bandages on his arms and face but he had his sword. He was on the other side of the glass.

“Donnie!” He slashed another portal through the window. “Oh my god, Donnie!”

He didn’t cry when Leo hugged him, even though every part of him was an exposed nerve. In a second, they were both lifted from the ground in Raph’s arms. He didn’t try to talk over Leo’s frantic questions, just squeezed Donatello tighter than he ever had.

It was almost enough, the warmth of his family, someone touching him like he was a person instead of an experiment. That was almost enough to let him relax but not enough.

“Mikey,” He rasped.

Raph put him down. He kept his hands on Donatello’s shoulders but stepped back to look him in the eye. “Mikey’s here?”

Donatello nodded. “I think. He was but-” _oh god, what if they moved him out of the building?_

Raph looked over his spikey shoulder. April was there, of course she was, wiping her eyes under her glasses. “I didn’t see him. I just called you when I found Don.”

“You did the right thing,” Splinter said.

“Pops,” that broke him. Tears swelled up and he couldn’t stop them. Splinter looked like he had lost about twenty pounds. He pushed passed Raph and took Donatello in his arms, squeezing hard. “I’m sorry, Pops, I’m so sorry!”

“I am very glad to see you again,” he said in a choked whisper. “My brave Donatello.”

He couldn’t answer, didn’t need to. Splinter stroked his head gently. “April, Raphael, take Donatello to the car. Leonardo and I will find Michelangelo.”

“Pops-” Raph wanted to argue but Splinter held up a warning finger.

“Leonardo has the sword. We may need to make a quick exit. You can keep the others safe…” his voice turned cold, “and I want Donatello out of here.”

“Pops-” it was the smartest plan, he knew that. Mickey didn’t have time to waste on Donatello’s pride, but leaving him behind felt wrong.

Splinter seemed to read his thoughts. He hugged him again and guided him back to Raph. “You’ve been strong long enough. Now you need rest.”

Even if he had a counter argument, Pops wasn’t taking input. Leo cut through the nearest wall, revealing a dark parking lot. Raph carried Donatello into the cold, fresh air. April hurried ahead to open the doors on the busted white jeep. The portal closed behind them, with the rest of their family on the other side.

“Where’d we get a car?” Raph put him in the back seat, obviously trying to be gentle.

“Front street,” Raph said. “Wasn’t good for much when they got you up in the helicopter.”

 _I missed a helicopter ride?_ “How long have we-?”

“Week and a half,”

“Nine days,” Raph spoke over April’s answer. He pulled a small bag out of the glove compartment. Donatello recognized his medical bag. He crouched down in front of the open door, digging out bandages and anti-septic. 

 _Only nine days?_ Had they somehow drugged the air in that place. His head felt so much clearer with the fresh air. The splash of antiseptic made him wince. “How-”

But Raph had started shaking. “You were too far away-” he took a deep, staggering breath. “Mikey was… we looked everywhere, Donnie. I’m so sorry, Donnie. I’m so sorry.”

“Raph,” he’d never seen his brother shake like that. Raphael stared down at his fists, looking helpless.

“We looked everywhere,” he said again. “Pops lost his mind. Leo wouldn’t sleep… We looked everywhere.”

“You found us.”

Raph shook his head, carefully wrapping the bandage around his arm. “April found you. Mikey’s still-”

Donatello winced again. Mikey was still in there, with Leo and their father. What if they got caught? His family would get slowly butchered, all because he couldn’t keep Mikey with him. Because he’d mouthed off. He couldn’t get Mikey out for nine days and now everyone was in danger.

“Hey, they’re gonna be fine.” April said. She had positioned herself in the driver’s seat, ready to drive at the first sign of trouble. “Leo’s got that portal sword down!”

She sounded so confident. Donatello let out a small breath. “Yeah, how’d that happen? Last time he used it, he got caught in a loop.”

Raph chuckled slightly at the memory. “Told you he didn’t sleep.”

Raph didn’t look like he’d slept much himself. He wiped his eyes and focused on bandaging Donnie’s other arm. Donnie leaned back on the seat, staring up at the sky. They must be pretty far outside the city. He’d never seen so many stars before.

* * *

_“Gogogogogo!” Leo didn’t give him an option to refuse. He grabbed Mikey by the head and booked it into the alley. He didn’t let go until they were back underground. “Are you okay?”_

“T2 remains stable. Beginning scan.”

_“Yeah,” Mikey rubbed his head. “Don’t freak out.”_

_The panic on his big brother’s face melted into annoyance. “Mikey, we told you a thousand times, you can’t just walk up to humans without a backstory, or a disguise or… at all! It’s dangerous!”_

_“I had a backstory!”_

_“Oh, yeah, what was it?”_

“Sir, it’s moving.”

_“Okay, so I was gonna improvise, so what?”_

“Restrain the subject.”

_“You could’ve gotten hurt!”_

_“I could’ve taken ‘em!”_

The needle went straight into his hand. He crushed in his palm and jabbed the broken plastic into lab coat’s neck. They staggered back, clutching the blood. Not everyone got to scream.

_“Then what, Mikey?”_

There were lots of machines in this room. His brother would know each of their purposes, but now they only needed to serve one. He hurled one at the glass window, where Edas cowered.

_“You beat up those guys and go home like they’re not gonna follow you? Like they won’t tell everybody they meet?”_

_“They could’ve been nice.” Mikey crossed his arms petulantly. “April’s nice.”_

_Leo rubbed his eyes with one hand. “April’s an exception. You’re a sweet kid, Mikey. You don’t wanna hurt anybody-”_

The glass shattered on the second try. He leapt through the hole, to corner his captor.

_“-so you never think anybody wants to hurt you, but you’ve only been coming up to the surface for a few weeks. Most humans aren’t like April.”_

The doctor’s nose broke so easily. He wasn’t even trying, just letting the pain flow out through his fists. The old man gurgled and groped for a weapon.

_“On a good day they’ll scream and run, on a bad day they’ll hurt you.”_

Something snapped in his neck. He stared up at Michelangelo, blood foaming at his lips. He didn’t try to speak. Who reasons with a wild animal?

_“I don’t wanna scare you, I just-” Leo shoved his swords back in their sheaths. “Don’t run off without us again, okay?”_

_“Okay.”_

There was a key fob in Edas’s lanyard. It opened the door. Michelangelo leaned hard on the wall, trying to stay upright. If he passed out now, he’d never see them again. He’d wake up on a gurney or he wouldn’t wake up at all. He kept the circular saw close to his side, unsure of how to turn it on. He’d do it though, when the time came.

“Mikey!”

_His brother grabbed him in a tight hug._

* * *

Alarms woke him with a start. For a minute, Donatello was back in his cell, waiting for something else to hurt him, but no, that was Raph in front of him. He had his back to the jeep, but Donatello could see the red glow of his mystic tonfas. April had the jeep running, ready for a retreat. He was safe.

Except for the blaring noise and flashing lights coming from the building across the parking lot. He looked around for a weapon, something to help.

Leo’s sword cut through the night as he pushed through the portal with Splinter, Mikey hanging limp between them.

_No-_

“Get in the jeep!” Leo shouted, shoving Mikey into Raph’s arms. He sliced open another portal as April revved the engine. He leapt up onto the hood and she sped through the rip.

“Mikey!” who the hell put a seat belt on him? Donatello squirmed free, ignoring the shriek from his wounds. “Mikey!”

“Donnie, don’t look,” Raph choked. He cradled their brother in his arms, blocking him entirely with his massive frame. Donatello ignored him. He needed to know how badly he failed.

“He is alive,” Pops said, picking himself up from the back of the jeep.

Donatello’s legs gave out from under him. He slumped down on the floor, shaking too hard. Raph’s jaw trembled. “How? He-”

“The fresh blood does not belong to him.” Pops knelt down in front of him. Raph pulled back, revealing Mikey’s body. Their father gently wiped the thick red blood from his face to reveal shallow, ragged breathing. “Help me get him inside.”

Raph nodded. He stepped carefully down from the jeep, carrying Mikey with him. Only then could Donnie get a real look at their surroundings.

He was home, back in the sewers. The portal landed them in the tunnel, just outside the living room. A few make shift doors away was Splinter’s meditation room, their beds, his lab. Doors he could open, no watching, people who loved him.

“Donnie?” April said in a small voice. He turned his head just enough to see her, pale and trembling. Leo stood beside her.

“What happened?”

“You got out,” Leo picked him up into a tight hug. He was crying. “Mikey got out. That’s all that matters.”

Donatello let himself rest on Leo’s shoulder, just long enough to catch his breath. He didn’t even try to stop the tears as he pulled back. “April?”

She hesitated, still shaking. “What I said before- I didn’t-”

“I know,” he cracked a weak smile and then she was in his arms, hugging him close.

“I’m sorry!” April sobbed. “If you hadn’t come to see me-”

“Ugh, enough!” Leo groaned. “You know whose fault this is? The creeps who grabbed my brothers! Not Raph, or you-” he turned a furious gaze on Donatello, “especially not you! Anybody else blames themselves and I’ll portal you into the east river!”

Donatello laughed but it came out like a cough. “Portal is a verb now?”

Leo pulled his arm over his shoulder. “C’mon, Smart guy, let’s check on Mikey.”

April took his other arm and they carried Donatello into the lair.

* * *

"Mikey, please wake up."

He didn't want to. He'd just got comfortable, and he was so tired. He didn't want to wake up to florescent lights and needles. He didn't want to see any more blood.

"Please just wake up, Mikey."

"You must get some rest, Donatello."

"I'm fine, Pops."

It was a dream. He'd had lots of dreams.

"Dude, it's been three days. We’ll tell you if something changes."

"I said I'm fine." Donnie snapped.

“You know a watched Mikey never babbles- ow!”

“Thank you, Raphael.”

So not a bad dream. He could handle this kind of dream.

“Look, guys, I get what you’re trying to do here, but the last time I left him alone-” Donnie stopped suddenly. “Did he just move?”

His family crowded nosily around him. Mikey could feel their eyes on him… which was new for a dream. He squirmed under the attention. Somebody put their hand on his. “Mikey?”

He blinked, expecting bright lights and sharp objects. They weren’t there. It was just… home, exactly as he’d left it. His father and brothers stared at him, tears in their eyes. Mikey blinked again.

Then they were all on top of them, hugging and crying and talking over each other. Mikey let out a slow breath. _Not a dream_. His father’s soft paws really cradled his face. Donnie still held his hand, apologizing over and over, while Leo told him not to. Raph just bawled.

“How do you feel, Michelangelo?” Splinter asked. He looked thinner, with more white hair around his face. “What do you need?”

Mikey looked blankly from his father to his brothers. He was home. What else could he want?

“He’s not talking,” Leo said in a nervous murmur. “You think there’s something wrong with-”

“They paralyzed his vocal cords.” Donnie said. Mikey touched his neck, remembering the needles. “I don’t know if it’s permanent.”

Mikey’s happiness turned cold in his stomach. What if he never spoke again? He made himself breath. If he tried and failed, then he’d know Edas broke him forever. He’d be lost.

“It’s okay,” Raph pulled his hand out of the wall, leaving behind the small indent of his fist behind. He patted his brother’s shoulder, which only hurt a little. “Mikey’s back.”

Mikey nodded, grateful. He was back. He wasn’t lost. He was back.

“Okay, guys,” April’s voice rang from the outer sewers. “I got six jumbo pizzas: one veggie supreme, two meat lovers supreme, one barbeque bacon cheese burger-”

“Did you get pineapple?!” His voice came out squeaky and without intention.

“Mikey!” April shrieked, tossing the pizzas in the air. They landed in a neat stack with divine intervention. April squeezed him tight, laughing and crying at the same time.

That got everyone started again. In a few moments, a half dozen pizza boxes were scattered open on Mikey’s bed. April had remembered the pineapple. Leo assured Mikey that they’d recovered his kusari fundo from the labs, while Donnie promised he could rebuild the tech bō.

“I was gonna upgrade her anyway,” he said. He hadn’t let go of Mikey’s hand yet and Mikey hadn’t pulled away.

“Who were those guys?” Mikey asked. His voice was still hoarse, but it sounded more like him.

Raph and Leo exchanged dark looks. “Only name we ever found was Stockman labs.” Raph said. “Not really sure what they do.”

“Besides, y’know, torture people,” Leo added. Raph hit him again.

“It’s okay, Mikey.” Donnie squeezed his hand. “They’re not getting the drop on us again. Promise.”

“I know.” Mikey said. He picked up another slice of pineapple bacon. He closed his eyes against the thick, horribly red sauce, and bit into the sweet fruit and cheese. They were home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fin!
> 
> I hope it lives up to the beginning! Thank you so much for your kind comments. You have no idea how much they help.


End file.
